I Know It Works

How many have heard that a silk scarf or handkerchief will catch a bullet?

This isn't myth; there are multiple accounts, many of them well documented. In the Twenties and Thirties, thick, quilted silk vests were sold as protection against bullets. However, I've never seen it happen.

I bought some cheap silk handkerchiefs (around $1.75 each + S&H) and dedicated one to test this.

I tried multiple arrangements. Even the one most likely to succeed failed miserably. That was: Handkerchief folded into multiple layers as if to put in a pocket, stapled at the top to cardboard with nothing but a couple more layers of cardboard behind, being hit with a 250 grain lead flat point .45 Colt Cowboy Action Load. That was a big, slow, lead bullet with a flat nose.

Maybe, if the bullet had been a softer alloy, the results might have been different. I think the main failing was that this silk was low quality. (Which is why I was willing to shoot at it. :-)

Scanner Pains

I just spent nearly six hours registering the software for my new PlusTek scanner. Based on my experience with this app I do _not_ recommend LaserSoft products, if this is typical of their software.

Note that the installation of both the hardware and software produced only minor problems. Despite no actual instructions beyond a manual of screenshots with no captions and a Quick Start which was difficult to parse and not adequate for getting started. The real problem was the registration. Even after I finally managed to get the product registered (the instructions said the serial number was supplied with the materials, but not which of several serial numbers I was supposed to use) the online update told me I _wasn't_ registered, but wouldn't let me register because I was already registered. Oh, and there's no actual user manual, just QuickTime movies in the app itself.